Tears of joy
by laughannie711
Summary: Mrs.Haruno is walking home when she meets someone very interesting sakulee, leesaku, Sakura X Lee, Lee X Sakura... i don't really know what to call it.


I have never written a fan fiction before and um... i'll take any and all criticism! i honestly don't even know how to check my reviews or even make a profile! i just got this account to post this so um... here it is! I don't know if it's good but you will tell me i guess. It's just that i've had this idea in my head for like a month and i finally decided to write it!Lee is like my favorite character and i think he deserves Sakura, but that is just my opinion.

The cashier smiled, "Thank you, have a nice day"

"You too" she smiled back at him and proceeded to pick up her sixteen very heavy grocery bags. Luckily she was able to balance them in both hands as she made her way out of the store, her arms could already feel the stress.

Usually, her daughter came along to the grocery store with her, to help carry the heavy bags. Being one of the strongest kunoichi alive, she was always a great help. But, being the ninja that she was, she had her own hectic and busy lifestyle, which occupied most of her time.

Of course, Mrs. Haruno was proud of her daughter's accomplishments, but she often missed the time they spent together. As Sakura grew older, she and her mother continued to grow father and father apart. That's what being a parent means sometimes, even though it was hard to except. They all have to grow up sometime. That is why she cherishes the small amount of time that they get to spend with each other. Like last night for example. Unfortunately, she is currently on a mission. Which is something that always makes her nervous. She was never 100 happy about her daughter choosing the dangerous life of a shinobi, but that's just they way it was.

Nearing the last of the shops, she turned to trudge down the next twenty-two blocks to her home. Her arms were beginning to shake

'_If only I had Sakura's muscles, life would be so much easier sometimes...'_

She observed the faces of passing families, trying to forget about the intense load she was currently struggling to keep grip of. Some were laughing, while others looked serious. This was going to be a **long** walk home.

Around that same time, a certain green clad ninja was walking home from an intricate day of training with his team.

He was tired and all he wanted to do was go home and sleep. That is, until he saw something that caught his eye.

A woman wearing a hat covering most of her hair and wearing a long coat that reached down to the back of her knees. She seemed to be struggling with a variety of large plastic bags. He watched her for a moment before he noticed that her arms were beginning to shake violently from the immense pressure.

Being the polite, helpful boy that he was, he quickly raced to her side.

"Would you like some help?"

She gasped and turned to the boy that shook her from her own thoughts.

"Oh that's okay, I'll be just fine"

"I insist! These packages look heavy, and I would never leave someone to carry all of this weight while I am perfectly capable of helping!"

"Oh um… thank you"

Too her surprise, he was able to easily lift every bag from her hands as if they were light as paper. She couldn't help but stare for a minute at the odd looking boy that stood smiling before her. That bowl shaped hair, those bushy eyebrows, that outfit.

"You seem familiar, have we met somewhere before?" she asked.

He looked her up and down for a moment. She did look somewhat recognizable to him. But he let that thought pass.

"No, I do not believe so."

She thought for a minute before finally allowing her legs to begin working again. She started walking in the direction of her home. He fell into step beside her.

"So if you do not mind my asking, where is your home?" he asked.

"I live about twenty blocks from here, on Fifth Avenue. I hope that isn't a problem."

"Not at all!"

"It is very kind of you to help like this"

"Anything to help out fellow citizen of Konoha!"

She laughed at his enthusiasm. They continued to walk in silence for a short while. Mrs. Haruno, being the talkative woman that she was, decided to start up a conversation.

"So tell me about your self." she began.

Lee turned to look at her. "Okay! My name is Rock Lee! I am sixteen years old and I am a Chuunin level ninja! I am currently training under the most talented Gai sensei! My dream is to become a splendid ninja without the use of ninjutsu or genjutsu! And I am in love with the most beautiful girl in the world!" Lee's face suddenly turned to a frown. "But I do not think she will ever return my feelings."

This caused Mrs. Haruno raise an eyebrow, but she stayed silent to allow him to continue talking.

"Since I first laid eyes on her, I knew I would love her for the rest of my life. Right then I asked her to be my girlfriend, but she said I was to unique. Her words hurt more than she will ever know. Even though we have become good friends since then, it kills me inside to know that she will never feel the same way." Then his bright smile returned to his face. "But I will never give up! I will continue to love and protect her with my life!"

She smiled. "Well what makes you think she will never return you love? You seem like a nice enough boy."

Then his smile faltered once again.

"Because her heart belongs to another. The boy who left our village to join the side of Orochimaru, in a quest to gain power. Sasuke Uchiha. She was devastated when he left. And because my leg was injured at the time, I could do nothing to help retrieve him. So as soon as I had my operation, I ran as fast as I could to try and help out, just for her. Even with my efforts, we were unable to bring him home. I hate to see such pain in her eyes." He sighed and put on a sad smile. "But I am confident that she will only become stronger through this experience, and I know that eventually he will be brought home and she will be able to see him once again."

She was bewildered. That brought up a lot of questions that she held for this boy. It also made her think back to Sakura. She always told her mother about the crush that she held for the Uchiha boy, and she was so depressed when he left. She knew of many other girls that felt the same way. Ino for example. From what she could tell, that Uchiha boy was quite popular with the girls. That was another story however, and Mrs. Haruno still had many questions for the boy and she wanted answers.

"Wait a moment, even though this girl turned you down, you still love her, you went after this other boy so that she would be happy?" It was very unusual to meet a boy that cared so much for a girl in the way that he claimed he did.

Lee nodded, "I would do anything to make her happy, even if it meant giving her up."

She couldn't help but be surprised. That was so chivalrous. Not a common trait you find in boys his age.

"How long have you known this girl?" she asked.

"Three wonderful years. I first met her at the chuunin exams when I was thirteen. She was twelve at the time." His smile shone brighter than ever now. " I remember how she avoided me with all her might at that time. Lucky for me, we are friends now, or I do not think I would be able to go on." He laughed.

"You still love her after three years?"

"Yes! More than anything! And my love only grows ever time I see her beautiful face! I will continue my attempts to win her heart! Even though it may never come."

That's when it hit her like a ton of bricks. She **did **know this boy.

_FLASHBACK_

"_Mom, can I speak to you?"_

"_Of course Sakura, what is it"_

"_Well you know how I feel about Sasuke right?"_

"_Right…"_

"_Well I… I just can't tell anymore. I still love him, but I don't think I can ever forgive him for abandoning us. I just don't know if I love him the same way that I used to. I really need someone to talk to."_

"_Well you know I'll always be hear to listen, Sakura. And as for Sasuke, what you are feeling is completely understandable; you may just be growing out of your childhood crush. You still love him because he is your teammate and you care about him. Could that be it?"_

"_It could be, I …just don't know."_

_There was silence for a moment._

"_Mom, I have been feeling weird lately, but it's only around this one person, and I don't know why."_

"_Who is it? Is it someone that I know?"_

"_No you don't know him, he's a friend of mine. I first met him at the chuunin exams three years ago. He's really weird." Sakura giggled and brought a smile to her face. "He came up to me and asked me out right there! He didn't even know me! And then he started blowing these weird kisses at me and I had to dodge them like my life depended on it! But even though I thought what he said was empty words, I found out that…he really meant what it." Her face became serious. "He saved my life mom. He almost died, but he still protected me."_

"_It sounds like this boy really cared about you."_

"_But that's the thing, he never stopped! He's still in love with me! And he is the kindest person I know but…he's so strange. He has these bushy eyebrows and a bowl haircut and he wears green spandex! He makes these weird self imposed rules and he trains all the time!" _

_Her mother laughed._

"_Sakura, have I ever told you about the first time I met your father?"_

_Sakura shook her head_

"_He wasn't what you would call…handsome." She smiled "In fact, he was probably the creepiest looking guy I ever meet! He was a boy with pink hair for Christ sakes! And these awful bright orange pants! And after we spent some time together, he started giving me these really strange looks. Gave me the willies!"_

_They both laughed this time._

"_Then why did you agree to go out with him?"_

"_I didn't at first… as a matter of fact, I do believe I turned him down at least 100 times. But he never stopped asking. He had such a big heart. Then I started getting this odd feeling in my stomach whenever he was around. I… didn't want him to leave my side. I realized I missed him whenever he wasn't with me. That's when I finally accepted his offer for a date. And he showed me the best time of my life. I was never happier then when we shared our first kiss. That's when I knew that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. It was the best decision I ever made."_

"_Oh mom… that's so sweet."_

"_And you know, I started to love his pink hair after a while… and I eventually bought him some new pants! And to my surprise, he had a really hot body!"_

"_EWWWW Mom! I don't want to hear about that!"_

_They laughed until their eyes began to water._

"_So what are you saying exactly mom?"_

" _I'm just saying that this feeling that you have around this boy might mean something. It might sound a little cliché but you have to trust your heart when it comes to these things. And who knows…he may have a nice body under that spandex suit."_

"_MOM!!!"_

_End of Flashback_

She stopped dead in her tracks and stared at Lee for a moment. It took him a minute to realize she wasn't walking beside him anymore and he turned around quickly to try and find her. He ran back to her side.

"Are you alright Miss?" Lee asked with concern in his voice.

She blinked and regained her composure, and she started walking again. They were only about four blocks from her house by this time.

"Yes, sorry about that! I was just thinking about something."

"Okay then!" He smiled again.

She started up there conversation once more.

"So tell me more about this girl, what does she look like?" she asked, trying to be sure that he was in fact, the boy that her daughter was talking about. She was almost positive, but she wanted to check all the same. And it wouldn't hurt to question the boy that may indeed be her future son-in-law.

"Well she has the most beautiful silky pink hair, the same color as the flower for which she is named!"

Now she was sure. She couldn't help but smile.

"Her eyes are a gorgeous jade green! Which is my favorite color by the way!"

She laughed. Like that wasn't already completely obvious by his outfit.

"As a matter of fact, you have similar green eyes. Yours are beautiful as well. It reminds me of her. My Sakura flower."

She smiled as Lee proceeded to get a dreamy look on his face. This boy was so sweet. She would have to remember to tell Sakura that she would allow her to marry him.

She had to say something.

"Well I don't think you should give up on this girl. Who knows…" she got a sly smile on her face. "She may like you more than you think."

"I can only dream." He said with a sigh.

"Well this is my house. Thank you so much for helping me Rock lee."

"Oh please! Call me Lee! And it was my pleasure. By the way, thank you for having that conversation with me! I did need someone to talk to. And as much as I love Gai Sensei, even with his infinite wisdom he is not always the best person to talk to when it comes to girls. You made me feel much better!"

She opened the door and Lee stepped in to put down the packages.

"Can't you talked to your mother about these things."

"Unfortunately, I do not have a mother. She and my father died when I was just a baby. I live alone so it is difficult to find people to talk to."

"Oh I am so sorry!"

She thought for a moment while Lee dropped her bags off in the kitchen.

"I would like to pay you back for helping me with all of this."

"Oh that is not necessary! I ju-"

"No I insist! I could use the company anyway since I will be eating alone tonight. And I could use your help with dinner." She didn't really need his help but she did want the company. And she figured he might want some as well.

"Well alright then! I guess I could stay!" he said with his award-winning smile.

"Alright then! Lets get started shall we?"

He nodded and helped to empty the contents of her bags, when Lee realized something.

"I have just realized! I have been talking only of myself! I did not even bother to ask you your name! I am sorry! Please tell me about yourself!"

"Well I'm not important! I'd much rather hear about you." She did not want to reveal to him who she was just yet as to not spoil her fun.

"I would be rude of me to continue talking about myself when I do not know one thing about you!"

"Well alright…" she thought of a way to answer him enough so that he wouldn't ask any questions about her life.

"My name is Mai. I work at the bakery on the other side of town and I have a daughter who lives here with me but she is currently out for a day or two." She hoped he wouldn't ask any questions about her daughter.

"You work in that bakery?! I love that place! They make the most fabulous bread! Why have I not seen you before?"

"I usually work in the back while I'm cooking, so I don't usually see the customers."

"That is too bad! You should go out to see your many loyal customers so that they can tell you how much they love your baking!"

She laughed at that. She didn't think that **everyone** would have something good to say about her bread. But it was a nice thought.

"Maybe I should."

They finished empting the bags and now it was time to cook.

Mai began to make dumplings for the two of them. Lee watched with curious eyes.

"May I please try something?" Lee asked.

She looked at him curiously and moved out of the way. She motioned for him to take over. She watched as he added various spices and flavorings.

"Here, I do not know if you will like this but, please try it." He handed her the spoon with a small piece of food on it.

She took it and looked from Lee to the spoon. She slowly put it to her mouth and slipped it in. Her eyes widened in surprise. He was staring at her, eager for an answer.

"That is the most… delicious thing that I have ever tasted!

Lee released a breath that he did not know he was holding. "I am glad that you enjoyed it."

He laughed a little.

"I was afraid that you were going to spit it out in my face for a moment there." He laughed and she joined him.

'This boy is kind, chivalrous, and he can cook! Sakura you better not let this one go!' She thought to herself. 'If you don't marry him I will!'

"So where did you learn to cook?"

"Well I used to eat things like fruit every night because I did not know how to cook at the time, but then I met Gai Sensei and he told me that I have to learn if I was going to continue living on my own. He said it was important to eat different kinds of foods. So he taught me how. I am very glad he did."

They continued to cook. Lee was the one who started the conversation this time.

"I am curious, you said you live here with your daughter correct?"

"Yes."

"Well, not to be impolite but, are you married as well?"

She frowned and continued to stir the contents of the boiling pot in front of her. All while gathering her thoughts. After a slight pause, she answered.

"I was. But my husband was killed while on a mission. I miss him everyday."

"Oh… I am so sorry. I realize it must be painful to lose the one you love."

"It is… but that was a long time ago, and I have since moved on with my life."

"Well that is good."

"Dinner is ready!" she said smiling and holding up two plates, attempting to change the subject.

"Great!" he yelled.

They made their way to the dinning room table and sat down to eat.

Just then, the door burst open revealing a very tired and very dirty Sakura.

"Sakura!?!" the two of them shouted at the same time.

"Mom? LEE!?!" she looked from Lee to her mother then back to Lee. Then she looked down at herself and noticed her disheveled appearance. She looked back up at her mother and Lee who where both staring at her with wide eyes. Her faced turned at least 20 shades of red.

'How could I let him see me like this?!?' she screamed to herself

She ran up the stairs as fast as she possibly could, not looking back.

Lee stared at where Sakura once stood and then turned his head slowly to the woman sitting across from him.

She was staring at him waiting for him to say something.

"What…Why was…" he stumbled over his words.

"You know how I told you that I had a daughter?" she said with an embarrassed smile.

"Yes I do remember that." He said, still having a very surprised expression on his face.

"Uh…um… That was her. I wasn't expecting her back until tomorrow."

"Well… Why did you not tell me?" he asked, still bewildered.

"You seem to like my daughter a lot, and I wanted to get to know you better. I didn't know if you would act different because I was her mother." Which was partly the truth. She did want to get to know the boy.

"I guess I can understand that." He began to relax a bit.

They continued to eat in silence, both deep in thought.

Meanwhile

Sakura was in the upstairs bathroom in a state of panic.

'What is he doing here! Why is he eating dinner with my mom! What is she telling him! I just basically told her I liked him last night and she go's and does something like this! AHHHH!!!' she thought to her self.

'I will **kill** her for this!'

'I need to clean up fast and get down there so she doesn't say anything potentially embarrassing.'

Then she proceeded to take the fastest shower she has ever taken, thoughts racing.

'Wait, maybe **she** didn't invite him over, she's never even met him before so how could she have known where to find him?! Though he is easy to spot in a crowd with the way he looks. But, maybe he stopped by looking for me!? Then this whole thing wouldn't be completely her fault. But she must have invited him in! How embarrassing!'

She turned off the shower and ran into her room to dress. She put on a clean outfit and quickly brushed her wet hair, drying it in the process.

Then she took one last hurried look in the mirror and ran back down stairs.

She saw that her mother and Lee were still eating silently, not looking each other in the eyes.

'She must have said something.' She thought.

"Hello!" she said with a nervous smile plastered on her face. She took a seat on the between Lee and her mother who were sitting at opposite ends.

The both looked up from their dinners to see Sakura.

"Hello Sakura!" Said lee, also with a nervous smile.

"Hi Sakura, how was your mission?" asked her mother trying to fill the silence.

"It went alright I guess. Naruto thought we were being attacked, but it turned out it was only a squirrel. He accidentally pushed me in the mud. It's okay though, I got revenge. Then we finished the mission early and came right home. It was easier than we thought."

"Well I'm always glad when you are able to come home safe." Said her mom.

Lee just smiled at her.

"I'll go get you a plate of food." She was relieved to have a reason to leave the table for even a minute.

Lee and Sakura watched her leave the room then looked towards each other. It was getting slightly awkward so Lee decided to say something.

"So when you say revenge, what do you mean exactly?"

She laughed.

"I punched him though a tree." She said with a huge evil looking smile on her face.

"Well I hope he's okay." He said through a chuckle.

"He can take it," said Sakura, also giggling a little.

Sakura's mom walked back into the room and smiled when she saw the two of them laughing.

"Here you go Sakura, you must be starving."

"Thanks mom" she smiled at her.

They all began to eat again. Sakura looked up from her mom to Lee. She had to ask.

"So why are you here Lee."

"I think I can answer that." Said Mai before Lee could answer.

"I went to the grocery store this morning because well, we were out of food. And you know how heavy the bags can be, but since you weren't there today, I have to carry them my self. But that was when Lee showed up and offered to help. I'm glad he did too because I don't think I would have made it back without his help."

Lee smiled.

"That was very kind of you Lee." Said Sakura.

"It…it was nothing," Lee said with a blush that was slowly creeping onto his face.

Sakura looked down again to finish her dinner. Her mom was right by saying she was starving. They hadn't stopped to eat once, and Naruto's talk about ramen was making her mouth start to water. Though she didn't notice, Lee was staring at her with that same dreamy look that her mother saw earlier that day. Mai, however, did notice. It brought a huge smile to her face.

"Oh Sakura," she said with an evil tone.

"Yes mom," said Sakura getting suspicious. She knew that voice all to well since she adopted one much like it threw the years. Much like how Lee adopted Gai Sensei's continuous talk about youth, and well everything else. Her mother was going to say something that she wasn't going to like.

"I found that note you wrote earlier. You know the one with Lee's name on it."

Sakura then turned as red as a tomato. Oh she was already thinking of ways to hide her mother's body.

"Did you want to give it to him?" She asked with an innocent voice.

Lee looked between Sakura, who was still very red and glaring at her mother, to Mai who continued to look innocent. Needless to say, he was very confused.

"You wrote me a note Sakura?" he decided to ask.

Sakura then turned to Lee growing even redder. That note was never supposed to be read by anyone! She only wrote it to help clear her thoughts about him. She wrote a similar note describing her feelings towards Sasuke when she was younger. Oh how she regretted leaving that note out on her counter. She should have burned it when she had the chance. How dare her mother read it! She knew it was personal! She turned back to shoot her mother one more death glare before turning back to Lee.

"Um…No… well…. Yes… but not really."

"Would you like me to go get it Sakura?" her mother asked, still playing the act of an innocent little angel.

"NO!" Sakura screamed.

Lee was growing more and more confused with every word, but he decided to stay quiet and observe.

"Nonsense! I'll go get it right away!"

That evil smile was back, which just brought more death glares from Sakura.

As Mai made her way up the stares, Sakura tried to shield her face from Lee's confused eyes.

As quickly as she left, she came running back down stairs, letter in hand.

"Here you go Sakura" she smiled and handed the note with Lee's name on it to Sakura

Sakura took it reluctantly and turned to her evil smiling mother.

"Mom don't make me do this," she said in a whisper.

Mai bent down to whisper in Sakura's ear.

"I have to sweetie," she thought for a second about the contents of the letter. "From what I read, I didn't think you where going to have the courage to tell him yourself. I didn't want you to lose him! And I'm sure from what he's told me, he'll be really happy after he reads this."

"But mom I wrote…" She thought about what she had written the night before "It's just so embarrassing!" she said, still in a whisper.

"I know." She said with an evil glint in her eye.

Sakura could just picture her mother breaking into maniacal laughter right then and there.

Mai stood back up and took a seat, folding her hands neatly on the table.

Sakura looked worried. She glanced down at the note that had Lee's name on it. She looked up to her mother and then back at the note.

"Um…Sakura?" Lee was **very** confused at this point.

"Uh…he- here," She held up the note for Lee to take, turning redder than ever this time. She looked away so she could not see his face.

Lee slowly and gently took the note out of her hand and stared at it. Then he looked up at Mai, who was looking straight at him with a sly smile on her face. He saw Sakura who looked almost as if she was going to explode.

'What is this thing' he thought to himself

He unfolded it and began reading.

_Dear Lee, _

_I can't stop thinking about you. I talked to my mom about you last night; she gave me some good advice._

_First of all, I want to thank you. You have always been so kind to me, even through the roughest of times. I can't believe you still care for me in the way that you do. I was so mean to you when we were young! Even when I pushed you away, you still loved me. You kept your word when you said that you would protect me and I am so thankful for that. You became one of my closest friends through the years. I truly believe you when you say that you will love me forever, and I can't tell you how good that makes me feel._

_Over the past three years, you stuck by me, never giving up once. My mother told me that my father was the same way with her. The way she talked about him sounded so romantic and sweet, and that is why I can't help but feel foolish. I never gave you a chance. I was always so hung up on Sasuke that I never got to know you. I could never get past your appearance, even though you were so beautiful on the inside._

_My mother also told me that it was possible that you had a nice body under your spandex suit anyway. I never told her, but I know she's right. I saw you training once with your shirt off and …wow._

Lee blushed at this but continued reading

_However, that does not matter. I have found that whenever you are not with me, I feel lonely, no matter who else is there. I love your company. I am always happier when you are around. I worry about you when you are away and I find myself waiting for you to return. You always know how to make me feel better and I love that about you._

_I dream about you almost every night. About just being with you, and you holding me. _

_I will probably never give you this letter because I don't think I will ever gain the courage, and I may never tell you how I feel. But, whether I tell you or not, the fact still remains the same_

_I love you, Lee._

_-Sakura_

Lee began to cry silently. He never felt so happy. Mai was across the table with the same evil grin growing larger across her face. Sakura still hadn't looked up from the floor.

"Sakura?" he said in low voice never gazing up from the last five words on the paper. "Do you really feel that way?"

All was silent for a moment.

"Yes… I do." She said slowly moving her stare from the floor into Lee's watering eyes.

He stood up suddenly and pulled Sakura out of her chair and into a deep hug. He gently pushed her back for a moment to look into her eyes. She had a small smile on her face.

Before she knew what happened. He was kissing her. She felt her body stiffen then relax as she slowly melted in his arms. Too her surprise, he was a really good kisser. But just as suddenly as it began, it ended.

"My little girl is growing up!" Mai couldn't help but say.

"Mom!" Sakura gave her an embarrassed look with a large blush on her cheeks.

Lee also had a blush spreading across his face but his dreamy expression from earlier had returned.

Then he unexpectedly snapped out of it.

"Oh! Mrs. Haruno, I must ask you!"

He looked at Sakura and they both smiled. Then he turned back to Mai.

"May I please have permission to date your daughter? I promise to protect her with my life!" He gave her the nice guy pose.

Both Mai and her daughter laughed.

"Of course you may date my daughter Lee."


End file.
